The Rattery parish website provides up to date information about the parish including parish council, village hall, activities and organisations events, general information and businesses and services.
Quick Links
Events and News
- Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service – Community Conversations event 10.09.25.
- Summer Bank Holiday Recycling and Waste Collection
- South Hams Licensing Policy Consultation Closes 30.09.25.
- Free Cyber Security Support from UK Policing
- Local government reorganisation
- Dartmoor National Park Authority Consultation (Closes 25.08.25.)
- Dartmoor Outdoor Festival 29th August to 5th September
- Rattery Panto 13 and 14 December 2025
- Please report pot holes in Rattery
Rattery Village and Parish
Rattery nestles in the hills on a plateau between the Harbourne and Dart valleys on the edge of Dartmoor.
With a rainfall of around 700mm per year there are many streams and the village has been inhabited for many centuries. Aerial photographs taken in 1983 show crop marks suggesting some evidence of prehistoric settlements (with some of Roman origins) in the parish.
There are several ideas about the origins of the name of Rattery. It may have come from Rathe Erse, meaning mound or fortification on a hill, a good description of its location. The name changed over the years to, for example; Rottruwe, Rottrue, Ratreu, Ratreueford, Radetre, Radetru, Rattriewe, Ratterie, and Ratworthie. Among many other variations the syllable “tru” (and its variations) was Saxon in origin meaning “trusted way” as at True Street, between Totnes and Berry Pomery and Wadstray near Blackawton.

Adapted from The Book of Rattery, a portrait in words and pictures – compiled by the people of Rattery. Chapter 1, The origins of Rattery Village and the Parish. (Halsgrove 2001).
